Meal Planning/Recipes

There is nothing like going apple picking on a fall day with your family, but what to do with all those apples?  Try this recipe for Simple Chunky Applesauce.

Winter in Wisconsin is the time of year for comfort food. When it is cold outside, bring me all the savory soups, rich casseroles, hearty sauces, and cheesy pasta dishes. Oooooohh, is your mouth watering yet? If only these homemade meals didn’t require spending hours in the kitchen! Enter my “cook once, eat twice” meal prep solution.

The great thing with this recipe is that you can leave it simple with the 3 ingredients (which are typically kitchen staples anyhow!), or you can customize it to your preferences by adding chocolate chips, vanilla extract, quick oats, etc.

Whether you make cookies from scratch, buy pre-made dough, go for Pillsbury, or just plain buy them ready-made, Christmas cookies are a memorable tradition for this time of year. Here’s a from-scratch recipe that I use, from Alton Brown. Now, to mentally prepare myself for this day of memory-making.

In some households, “leftovers” is a dirty word, but not mine. In fact, my people prefer some of my dishes on the second or even third day. That’s because I’ve mastered the art of second-day suppers.

My go-to fall recipe is the famous “Dump Dessert” — this little concoction never disappoints me, seriously. If desserts could be a reliable item of clothing (unlike non-stretch jeans), “Dump Dessert” would be your favorite stretchy pajama pants, you know the ones– you have had them since your early 20s and they still fit–thoooose pants.

My husband is a competitive triathlete, and keeping him fed is important. My two step-daughters also love to eat; one is pickier than the other, which is always a challenge, but they like most of the tasty meals that we prepare at home.

Whether you enjoy cooking or not, making cooking easier and more efficient is always a plus! Here’s where the ice cube trays come in…

Making homemade baby food is literally one of my favorite things to do right now.  I’ll be honest, I don’t even like to cook, but there is something different about making food for my little guy that has its own charm.

If you are like me – short on time and dislike meal planning, here are some ideas that have made meal planning SOO much easier for me (and have also helped us eat better).